Tag Archives: Stoner Rock

MELVINS: Manchester Academy 2. 28/10/2018.

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For as long as I can remember, I’ve idolised Melvins. I’ve always been in awe of their heavy sound and how they just make you constantly feel like you’re hallucinating or some weird shit. On Sunday night, I finally got to see them and after years of waiting- I can safely say it was worth the wait.

Melvins ripped apart the Academy on Sunday night. They easily could have sold out the main venue, but in Academy 2 which used to be a notorious sweatbox, they kept their cool and made you feel like you were in a huge arena with their sound and presence. There is something about Melvins that makes you want to pick up a guitar and just unleash a thousand furies upon anyone who will listen. Previously they’ve had two drummers- this time, we got two bassists. I’d have LOVED to have seen them with two drummers, but having two beasts on the bass was an equally brilliant experience. Oh, and Steven was wearing one of the best jackets I’ve ever seen!

The set did mainly consist of material from their newest record, Pinkus Abortion Technician which is a brutally heavy record and although I’ve not paid too much attention to the record- the live version of these songs just made me love the record a hell of a lot. Something that is always consistent with this band is how out there they are, and just when you think they can’t blow your mind more than they have- they just ruin your eardrums and make you so glad you have this band in your life.

I took my girlfriend with me to the show. I wasn’t sure if she was going to enjoy the show, but she’s one of life’s greater people and she’s pretty cool so, I had nothing to worry about. She was more shocked that I loved a band as heavy as this! I can see why. If Sleep ever play a UK show again, I’ll have to take her. Anyway, converting people to this great band aside- Melvins put on a mind-bending show. Everything about their live show utterly projects just how amazing they are, and how they are just so criminally underrated. Bands like this have it in them to last until the end of time, and I’m pretty sure King Buzzo is going to outlive us all. There is no way he is human. He’s something else, and to just be in the same room as him blew my mind. I had to stop myself from freaking out when he walked on to the stage to do a line check.

A highlight of course, was Dale closing the show with a delightful rendition of So Long, Farewell. However for me, Don’t Forget To Breathe was my favourite moment of the show. Sure it’s a new song, but my god it is menacing. It is terrifying and it is divinely hypnotising. I felt like I was on another planet when they performed this. It’s an 8 minute whirlwind that just lures you in, and they do it in the most enigmatic way possible. If it wasn’t for Melvins, we wouldn’t have a lot of the bands we have now. I love hearing bands who have been influenced by them, because for the most part the influence is subtle but when you dig deeper- it’s definitely there.

I can safely say that after years of waiting, this was everything and more. I knew I was going to have my brain fried and my eyes opened to a different world. I went in expecting something magical, and I sure as hell got it. Easily one of the best shows I’ve been to this year and you know, it’s always pretty damn cool seeing one of the most important bands to you live. That’s a feeling that can’t ever be replicated.

PIGS PIGS PIGS PIGS PIGS PIGS PIGS: King Of Cowards.

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With just six songs, the new record by Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs just instantly blows your mind, bursts your eardrum and fills you with this eternal rapture. The record opens with GNT which is probably the best opener to any record I’ve heard in a long time. The record is menacing. The record feels like something you’d play to conjure up something from the underworld. It’s an incredible record. It’s just absolutely mind-bending, life-changing and really really loud.

Before I really get into this record, I just hope our next generation, and the generation after that get into bands like Pigs and keep this sound alive. The musicianship is out of this world. To create something this loud, this off the wall and important takes guts, and Pigs sure as hell have them. The songs are proper anthemic which are created to just rip you apart, and totally devour your soul. You don’t mind the band taking every piece of you, because the music is that powerful. The passion in Matt’s voice is insane. He sounds like a preacher with a cult following- we will all listen and cling to his words. The sheer heaviness of this band and the way they sound together reminds me of two of my all-time favourite bands- Sleep and Melvins. They make me feel exactly the same way I did when I first heard these bands a long time ago. They just fill you with excitement because FINALLY we have a band making heavy music that has some bite to it.

There’s only five of them in the band, but on this record they make you feel like you’re listening to a Stoner Rock orchestra. It’s nothing but genius. That’s the only word to describe them. Some may have labelled last year’s release, Feed The Rats as being quite difficult to listen to- but I don’t get it. Three songs that last ages, and with every listen they just make your brain go off into the unknown. Have they done the same with King Of Cowards? Come on now, you KNOW they have.

Right now I’m calling A66 as my favourite. I love how it just feels like your whole being is turning to mush, and as you melt into the ground- the band take what is left of you and create something no other band has ever dared to do. They push themselves, they push the listener and I love that so much. They’ll make you feel uncomfortable with first listen- especially this song. At times it’ll feel like white noise echoing in your ears and shattering your skull, but before the song is done- you’ll be hooked. There is no band like this right now, and thank fuck we have them. They’re playing Manchester soon, but I’m a twat and I didn’t get a ticket. Guess I’ll have to wait until April for the next one!

This record aside, you just know that Pigs are a band that HAVE to be seen live. When A66 goes right into Thumbsucker, you just know that their live shows would leave you hard of hearing for weeks. It doesn’t matter anyway, because nothing will sound as glorious as them. I love tranquil bands like Warpaint and Beach House so much, but there’s part of my brain that craves bands like Pigs to just unleash everything that gets held back. I love nothing more than listening to them stupidly loud, and getting completely lost in how phenomenal they are. I know they aren’t for everyone, but anyone can hear just how brilliant they are. The have this huge sound that stays ringing in your brain for hours after you’ve listened to them.

Some music is just destined to be played loud. There’s no other way to listen to King Of Cowards other than brutally loud. I’ve always had such love and respect for them, and what they’ve done with this record has totally blown me away. I’m in awe of how great they are- I always knew they were, but they’ve truly done something else with this record. You’ll never know what you’re going to get with them, and that’s one of the many reasons as to why I’m obsessed with them.

Buy the record, go to the shows and don’t wear earplugs when you go see them. Absorb in all the noise, the sweat, the limb flailing and just get right into it.